World's End Girlfriend - Seven Idiots

World's End Girlfriend is the alter-ego of Japanese musician Katsuhiko Maeda, a composer of over 600 songs who started composing at age 12. Maybe naively, I trusted the wiki article that put Maeda's musical genres as "post rock" "classical music". It'd have been more accurate to leave the genre box blank- based on Seven Idiots it'd be even more naive to try and tie him down into any genres. It's the most gleefully nuts album I've heard in years.
It's often conventional when faced with an a...

World's End Girlfriend is the alter-ego of Japanese musician Katsuhiko Maeda, a composer of over 600 songs who started composing at age 12. Maybe naively, I trusted the wiki article that put Maeda's musical genres as "post rock" "classical music". It'd have been more accurate to leave the genre box blank- based on Seven Idiots it'd be even more naive to try and tie him down into any genres. It's the most gleefully nuts album I've heard in years.

It's often conventional when faced with an album like this to claim that "you'll never have heard anything like this", but that wouldn't be true in the case of Seven Idiots. All the elements of the songs sound familiar, it's just that the way Maeda uses them are totally unexpected. Take first single 'Les Enfants Des Paradis' as a prime example. It kicks off with handclaps and a poppy burst of guitar which soon gives way to some serene, fairy tale music, which is turn is soon obliterated by a torrent of breakbeats. This is within the first two minutes of the track starting. The same is true of 'Teen Age Ziggy', which sees a glam, Bowie-esque riff soon give way to a cavalcade of musical insanity. Maeda's invention is evident throughout the album, with distorted jazz saxophones colliding with harmonious string sections and giddy electronica that sound like a malfunctioning robot. The overall effect is akin to listening to the theme tune to a demented kids TV show that no sensible parent would let their children watch.

One thing you can say about Seven Idiots is that it's never dull, but the sheer volume of styles can threaten to get overwhelming at times. It is to Maeda's credit, therefore, that the album remains fun at all times. His creativity and clear love of music is infectious and, while maybe not a record you'll fall in love with, it's also an album you'll not get bored of for quite some time.